I recently made a new friend. Pooya is a 2-year immigrant to Montreal, Canada from Iran. Living up to my name, I was curious about what it was like for an immigrant to leave his country and make a new life for himself. He is currently working as a Research and Teaching Assistant while earning his Master's of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering. I really learned a lot from talking with Pooya; he was gracious enough to agree to let me share his story with all of you! I edited his grammar to make it easier to understand, but everything appears just as he told me. "Originally, I came from Iran and have lived and studied for 2 years in Montreal. To make a long story short, I wanted to open my eyes to another part of the world, new cultures, and new people with different issues and approaches to those issues that I may have never faced before. Coming from a politically closed country like Iran, I found study the best excuse to escape. Now, I am working on my Master’s in mechanical engineering. I work on the enhancement of advanced materials.Of course, technology is more developed here; more facilities make life easier, educational systems are more advanced, etc. But I cannot forget that I left all my family and friends that I’ve made over the years, all my work connections, my job, and many other things in hopes of a better life. The Iranian government makes our lives hell, imposing religious thoughts on everybody, regardless of what they might think. I never felt free to speak my opinion and challenge others. I had everything there: home, money, a job, social recognition, a very nice girlfriend, friends and family...the only thing missing was freedom and security. And what don’t I have here? Money, a job, good friends, family, and especially social recognition. "It’s also hard because my brother lives in New York – just 700 km away – and I can’t visit him, simply because they won’t give me a Visa. My brother is my only sibling as is 2 years younger than I am. He left Iran one year before I did, and I was finally able to visit him last year. It is really random whether you can get a Visa or not. It depends on the political relations between the two governments (yours and the destination’s)"The funny part is that on the application, they literally ask you whether you have ever been involved in a bombing or assassination operation. If yes, how many people have you killed? And at the border, when you want to cross into the U.S., the officer, who looks like he just finished high school, interrogates you about your research program. These are facts that not everybody is aware of, and makes life for people like me a bit difficult here. Over the past 3 years, I have spent so much time filling out different forms and getting documents and papers to give me an identity here. Coming from a background of managing people at a job and running an industrial project, looking for an identity is a huge restart. Leaving your country with all your belongings can be much easier when you decide to do it for a particular reason (like to experience new things and people). I have a couple of Canadian friends you have lived in eastern Asia for 2 years and they loved it. But the same trip can be a nightmare when you feel obliged to leave your home because you feel that your potential is going to waste because of the stupid policies of your government and the restrictions they impose on your life. Plus, it takes a very long time to learn a language well enough that you can use it to communicate with others. It’s a very complex experience."Politics in the Middle East is too complicated! I can talk about my observations and experiences, but I haven’t studied it very much. In my opinion, all governments in the world abuse people’s beliefs and their lack of knowledge on various issues. They do this to gain power, money, and control over nations. This happens in a very exaggerated form in the Middle East. I don’t think that politicians are closed minded; I think that they use religion as a very powerful lever to keep people close-minded so they can be exploited. They (politicians) repress any opposing idea under the title of a threat against religion in order to gain people’s implicit approval. This way, they keep people in their control."My personal beliefs don’t carry any standard name of a religion. The main principle in my life is to minimize hurting people, whether physically, mentally, or emotionally. I respect everybody’s rights and dignity, and I expect the same. Although people disappoint me, it never reduces the importance of my principles. I try to accept people the way they are, with their own beliefs and principles, as long as they respec."